Axfood summarises a strong second quarter, with growth significantly outperforming the market. Thanks to affordable and attractive offerings, more and more consumers are choosing to shop with us. Moreover, investments in automation and logistics in recent years are having a positive impact on the Group's efficiency and competitiveness. Strategic initiatives are also under way to further strengthen the Group's market presence and the position of the store chains.
President and CEO Simone Margulies comments on the interim report for the second quarter 2025:
"It is clear that a growing number of consumers are choosing to shop with us. Axfood grew significantly more than the market in the second quarter, primarily driven by Willys with the business concept of offering Sweden's cheapest bag of groceries. Retail sales increased 23% in total, or 9% excluding City Gross which was acquired in November last year.
With its strong position as Sweden's most recommended food retail chain, Willys reports strong growth in the quarter that was higher than the market growth on both a total and like-for-like basis. In all, Willys' sales increased 10%, driven by continued positive volume growth due to high customer traffic and customer loyalty. Hemköp reported a good performance in the traditional grocery segment with growth of 6%, and Snabbgross continued to successfully navigate a weak restaurant and café market, also delivering 6% growth.
City Gross has great potential and gives us presence in the hypermarket segment, an attractive market segment that the Group has not previously been present in. Growth for the quarter amounted to 3%. This year marks a year of transition, and we are working according to our plan to strengthen the store chain for the future and achieve profitability at some point in the second half of 2026.
With both Easter and Midsummer taking place during the quarter, Dagab is summarising a good quarter with large volumes, improved productivity and increased market investments to support its customers. Work also continued to optimise processes and flows at the highly automated logistics centre in Bålsta, which has been fully operational since the spring. As previously communicated, Dagab is also planning for the next stage in the development of the logistics structure in order to create even more capacity and further improve efficiency in southern Sweden from 2030.
With a significant increase in customer traffic, high growth and logistics efficiency improvements, the Group's earnings increased. Initiatives to improve the efficiency of our support functions were implemented during the quarter. The efficiency gains will lead to annual cost savings of approximately SEK 80 m from 2026, creating the conditions for the Group to continue investing in price value and enhancing its competitiveness.
Renewable energy is an important area when it comes to reducing our carbon footprint. During the quarter, we officially opened Sweden's largest solar park. In addition, the phase-out of fossil fuel in the Group's transports continued during the quarter through an increased use of renewable fuels.
We summarise a strong quarter in which we grew more than the market and continued to attract both existing and new customers. We are seeing positive momentum in Willys, Hemköp and Snabbgross, and are working to improve City Gross. Our base operations have become more competitive thanks to our new logistics platform, and we continue to maintain a high tempo in our strategic initiatives in many areas. We have a high ambition level and development rate in order to further strengthen our positions - always with the customer meeting in focus."
Second quarter summary
- Net sales increased 9.3% to SEK 22,995 m (21,044).
- Retail sales increased 22.9% to SEK 20,282 m (16,509). Excluding City Gross, retail sales increased 8.8%.
- Operating profit amounted to SEK 934 m (836) including items affecting comparability of SEK -25 m (-). The operating margin was 4.1% (4.0).
- Adjusted operating profit amounted to SEK 959 m (836) and the adjusted operating margin was 4.2% (4.0).
- Net profit for the period amounted to SEK 622 m (582) and earnings per share before dilution to SEK 2.85 (2.68).
Summary January - June
- Net sales increased 6.6% to SEK 44,034 m (41,296).
- Retail sales increased 19.3% to SEK 39,111 m (32,790). Excluding City Gross, retail sales increased 5.9%.
- Operating profit was SEK 1,653 m (1,653) including items affecting comparability of SEK -63 m (-). The operating margin was 3.8% (4.0).
- Adjusted operating profit amounted to SEK 1,716 m (1,653) and the adjusted operating margin was 3.9% (4.0).
- Net profit for the period amounted to SEK 1,075 m (1,143) and earnings per share before dilution to SEK 4.93 (5.28).
Axfood will present the interim report for the second quarter 2025 in a webcast at 9:30 a.m. (CET) today, 11 July 2025. The report will be presented by Simone Margulies, President and CEO, and Anders Lexmon, CFO. You can find a link to the webcast at axfood.com. A link to register to participate via conference call is also available at axfood.com. Upon registration, a telephone number and conference ID for the conference call will be provided.
For further information, please contact:
Alexander Bergendorf, Head of Investor Relations, Axfood AB, tel +46 73 049 18 44
The information herein is such that Axfood AB (publ) is required to make public in accordance with the EU Market Abuse Regulation and the Securities Markets Act. The information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person listed above, at 7:00 a.m. CET on 11 July 2025.
This document is an English translation of the Swedish original. In the event of any discrepancies, the Swedish version shall govern.
Axfood aspires to be the leader in affordable, good and sustainable food. Our family of companies includes the store chains Willys, Hemköp and City Gross as well as Tempo, Handlar'n and Matöppet. B2B sales are handled through Snabbgross, and our support company Dagab is responsible for the Group's product development, purchasing and logistics. The Axfood family also includes Urban Deli as well as the partly owned companies Apohem and Eurocash. Together the Group has approximately 15,000 employees and sales of more than SEK 85 billion. Axfood has been listed on Nasdaq Stockholm since 1997, and the principal owner is Axel Johnson AB. Read more at www.axfood.com.
